Even though an agreement has been reached between town and state officials on how to get the town shooting range reopened after 17 months, the issue is far from resolved, judging by a discussion of the conservation commission this week. There are conflicting views within the commission, among the public and apparently on the town council, which has yet to weigh in.

The conservation commissioners, who have been in charge of the range for the last 30 years, disagree on who should run it and how. Most commissioners still want to hang onto their control, believing they have done a good job, have the expertise and are the most accessible public agency. But some pointed out – perhaps rightfully – that the commission was never trained in that role and that such oversight may be out of the scope of the conservation mission, particularly passive recreation. The state Department of Conservation Services has deemed the parcel passive recreation, but some commissioners won’t accept the DCS definition.

There is also the question of whether the proposed land swap of the 16-acre shooting range portion of the 30-acre conservation parcel is comparable to the 16-acre Breed’s Hill municipal land, reversing the designation of the two parcels. At least one commissioner was not happy with the choice of Breed’s Hill in an industrial area, next to the airport and drinking water wells.

The public also is still split on the shooting range, with the strong supporters, some 500 who hold use permits, wanting the range open as soon as possible, while neighbors and others still oppose it because of the noise and other environmental and recreation concerns.

Several conservation commissioners also are miffed because they were left out of the negotiations on the land swap between town and state officials, although the chairman was included. They said they don’t know where the town council stands on the issues and whether it has the two-thirds majority vote required to approve the land deal and then get approval of both houses of the Legislature.

One commissioner’s suggestion that the commission and council get together in a working session to understand their respective positions seems like a reasonable approach before any votes or final decision are made on this sensitive issue.